Scales within the melodic minor....

bump.

can someone help me out on this please...

Well melodic minor is spelled changes depending on whether you are playing an ascending scale or a descending scale:

Ascending: 1 2 b3 4 5 6 7

Descending: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7

So the ascending bit is the same as a major scale except for the (critical) minor third. The descending scale is just natural minor. So in A:

A major: A B C# D E F# G#
MMinor Ascending: A B C D E F# G#
MM Descending: A B C D E F G

So in all its : A B C D E F# G#/ A G F E D C B A

Is this what you were looking for?
Matt

The answer is sorta-kinda.

You can take the 'modal' approach with any scale, building new scales by using the interval pattern that results from starting at a point besides the keynote. They're not modes, though.

The traditional modes of Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, and Mixolydian are older than the major scale; they didn't come from starting the major scale at different points. When major and minor tonalities began being used, a theorist named Glareanus realized that the interval patterns were the same as the four church modes - so he assigned the Greek names Ionian and Aeolian to the newcomers. He also recognized the theoretically possible Locrian, but rejected it as musically useless.

You can look at any scale the way Glareanus did, and shift the tonal center to some other note. The thing you should remember, though, is that modes ARE scales - they're not "the major scale starting from a different spot", because if you use them that way you might as well spare yourself the effort.. .they won't come out as modes.

You can give very specific names to these scales, and they might even seem modal... if the logical comparison is one of the modes. You can take the C melodic ascending minor:

C-D-Eb-F-G-A-B-C

and start the interval pattern from G:

G-A-B-C-D-Eb-F-G

you could then logically call it 'Mixolydian b6', because the result is the Mixolydian scale with a flatted sixth. Likewise, starting from the third, you get:

Eb-F-G-A-B-C-D-Eb

compare that with the Eb major scale, and you'll see that it raises the fourth (A instead of Ab) and the fifth (B instead of Bb). Since the Lydian mode has a raised fourth, you might call this the 'Lydian Augmented' scale.

So yeah, the concept is valid. An no, they don't have set names.